Rivian R1T 10,000-Mile Report: Owner Talks Issues, Service Experience

Kyle Conner lists all the issues he's had with his R1T, how they were fixed (or not), and how Rivian service works.

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Dan Mihalascu

By: Dan Mihalascu

Sep 14, 2022 at 12:38pm ET

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If you follow this page regularly, you know that our friends at Out of Spec Reviews have been running a Rivian R1T for about three months now.

Kyle Conner bought a Launch Edition R1T in early June and has already covered 10,000 miles (16,000 kilometers) in it, which means it's time for a service recap including everything that was broken on the electric truck, what was fixed, the cool over-the-air software updates—plus the first Rivian service experience.

First, Kyle walks us through the problems he had with the R1T, starting with the retractable tonneau cover; more specifically, the clunking noise it makes during operation. After the 10,000-mile service visit, the tonneau cover worked better, but with every use it sounded worse and started to get hung up on the way in, leading Kyle to call it the worst design part of the truck.

Now, Rivian is working on a new version of the tonneau cover that will hopefully fix these issues, but until then, owners are stuck with the clunky part—yes, it's a widespread issue.

Speaking of clunking sounds, Kyle also noticed such a noise coming from all four motors, which was caused by a click from the half shaft to the inner bearing. Rivian replaced the front and rear half shafts, along with some bolt locks.

Unfortunately, Rivian said this was a temporary fix and the problem would come back, which not what you expect from a vehicle that costs around $90,000. Kyle says he's hoping that Rivian will develop a permanent fix for this issue, which is the most annoying of all according to him.

He also noticed the suspension was making a chirping noise at low speeds when gently accelerating or decelerating, but Rivian told him the noise coming from the air suspension was a natural characteristic of the vehicle. Another issue Kyle had with his Rivian R1T was with the tailgate, which sometimes didn't automatically drop down with the push of a button as it is supposed to. However, that problem was fixed by the automaker.

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Besides these problems, the service visit fixed several minor issues such as a squeaky sound from the frunk when it opens, the charge port door not closing sometimes without manual assistance, some misaligned body panels, and more.

Obviously, fixing all these issues cost nothing because the vehicle is under warranty. In addition, communicating with Rivian's service reps was very straightforward and fast, which is something Kyle really appreciated. Check out the video above for the full details and the video below including a rundown of the issues he sent to the Rivian service team before bringing the truck in.